tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34726211236355112532024-02-19T22:03:33.356-08:00The Other Two-FifthsProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.comBlogger192125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-4241125931167775722012-04-12T09:04:00.000-07:002012-04-12T09:04:17.505-07:00What I would have said about the Trayvon Martin caseThere is something about the subtle, not provably deliberate de-racializing conversations surrounding the Trayvon Martin killing that just rub many Black people the wrong way. When Jay Leno interviews Piers Morgan as an expert, and everyone is clearly sympathetic to the Martin family for their loss, <b>what can you say when they try to take race out of the narrative?</b> Well, you have to say <i>something.</i><br />
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<b><a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2012/04/thats-so-trayvon-what-the-martin-case-teaches-us-about-affirmative-action-and-integration/" target="_blank">Jill (Cheryl Contee) says it very well</a>.</b> Here's one quote from her <b>April 12 JJP</b> post, and then please go check out the original.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The step backward then is the misunderstanding, the lack of connection of race to what happened. The bewilderment I see in white people’s eyes as they ask — how did this even happen? They are shocked! Shocked, confused and dismayed! The Trayvon case is not shocking for African-Americans. Infuriating, yes. Disgusting, yes. But sadly…so sadly not shocking. Ok so white folks, just so we’re all clear — this happened because unlike your kid (or you), Trayvon was not white. And this kind of thing has a way of happening to not-white people sort of regularly.</blockquote>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-27216123998284399682012-03-29T10:32:00.001-07:002012-03-29T10:32:24.582-07:00An Awkward Black Girl article that isn't awkward<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3sLEGXbnJ0EH0viFjTTGyvC8aeUWyaV28KZXXK0G17oVdOGn3_DBc0_UodMoatv0OcRGlnHCyiYXytJe4w6iCZT2DkGuzm6MQ0LD8NOEWOc2ndAMNYRQPOgDwaN_v2T7GHdXcrG0KYqM/s1600/ABGHeadshot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3sLEGXbnJ0EH0viFjTTGyvC8aeUWyaV28KZXXK0G17oVdOGn3_DBc0_UodMoatv0OcRGlnHCyiYXytJe4w6iCZT2DkGuzm6MQ0LD8NOEWOc2ndAMNYRQPOgDwaN_v2T7GHdXcrG0KYqM/s200/ABGHeadshot.jpg" width="181" /></a></div>
Cross-posting from <a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2012/03/thursday-open-thread-192/" target="_blank">Thursday's open thread at JJP</a>.<br />
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Awkward Black Girl update. Just a reminder that the Internet isn't a post-racial paradise... Oh, you knew that<br />
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Good article and very interesting examples of the vitriol one can condense into 140 characters... <br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="http://www.xojane.com/issues/people-internet-can-be-hella-racist" target="_blank">ISSA / PEOPLE ON THE INTERNET CAN BE HELLA RACIST </a><br />
I won an award for my web series, Awkward Black Girl, and then the racists tweets came out of the woodwork...</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: x-small;">________________</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image from <a href="https://twitter.com/#%21/awkwardblkgrl" target="_blank">@awkwardblkgrl's Twitter profile</a>.</span>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-21347345127910568872012-03-27T15:45:00.000-07:002012-03-27T15:45:17.254-07:00Because I don't know where else to post this<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl4gEQP3iBDevtzZi4s8nwmzKyS5PLxcaoHxV53HXbGSHdnQPUmgJswbq2TPAUF-SieHWIfGU8Apya7NW_fCxnAELzZcAJEoFoPOdmT8eTeNnq61kQciR90QOMcHg9b5q65HRMrSOixEU/s1600/colored-bubbles-walgreens.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl4gEQP3iBDevtzZi4s8nwmzKyS5PLxcaoHxV53HXbGSHdnQPUmgJswbq2TPAUF-SieHWIfGU8Apya7NW_fCxnAELzZcAJEoFoPOdmT8eTeNnq61kQciR90QOMcHg9b5q65HRMrSOixEU/s320/colored-bubbles-walgreens.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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From <b>Crayola®</b>, the people who brought you "flesh" as a crayon choice back in the day, we give you <b>Outdoor Colored Bubbles</b>. Don't invite them in, is my advice. This was taken in a Walgreen's in Houston, Texas a few days ago. No, I didn't buy any. Yes, it says "Color Rubs off of Skin!" And that is indeed an indeterminate-race kid on the box, indicating fun for all.ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-14945025927625419702012-02-21T10:25:00.000-08:002012-02-21T10:25:44.684-08:00Digital Divide, redux & threedux<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBQEjb9mM9QrnQDboJ9rrkep7zt_zRNaij4JuP1LQaU9ekzmgHW4eSJNDo6o0ChhfQkkx_0xK8Ouq9RghHhk5AX03KiOiZfhXDtruCwX547Z4GyTjBkWFjKZeRR9YhLvxj0msfjIxj9V0/s1600/telephone-poles-flickr-Cikd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBQEjb9mM9QrnQDboJ9rrkep7zt_zRNaij4JuP1LQaU9ekzmgHW4eSJNDo6o0ChhfQkkx_0xK8Ouq9RghHhk5AX03KiOiZfhXDtruCwX547Z4GyTjBkWFjKZeRR9YhLvxj0msfjIxj9V0/s1600/telephone-poles-flickr-Cikd.jpg" /></a></div>
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Ending basic "last resort" land-line phone service in rural areas would dismantle yet another safety net. If you don't think it applies, I suggest it looks like a test case for doing the same in unprofitable urban areas.<br />
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h/t <b>Zandar</b> for semi-channeling the late Jim Croce (and a <b><a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2012/02/tuesday-open-thread-187/" target="_blank">JJP</a></b> commenter for pointing this story out in the first place):<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Monday, February 20, 2012<br /><a href="http://zandarvts.blogspot.com/2012/02/you-can-keep-dime-operator.html" target="_blank">You Can Keep The Dime, Operator</a>Posted by Zandar </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
When you privatize a utility and cry "Government has no business in business!" and leave everything up to the free market and profit motive, you invariably get people who are priced out of the market.</blockquote>
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McClatchy stories tend to be around for 7 to 14 days before archiving, so take a look early at the details here:<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2012/02/17/139189/kentucky-phone-companies-push.html" target="_blank">Kentucky phone companies push to end basic service</a><br />By John Cheves | The Lexington Herald-Leader </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
FRANKFORT — Kentucky's telephone industry wants the option to end basic phone service in less profitable parts of their territories <b>if</b> other communications options, such as cell phones or the Internet, are available in the area...</blockquote>
From our "That's a Big <b>If</b>" Dept., later in the story:<br />
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<blockquote>
"For a lot of people in Eastern Kentucky, their land line is their life line," said Cathy Allgood Murphy, AARP Kentucky's associate state director. "They may not be able to afford an Internet connection, and they don't have cell phones because their communities, in the mountains, don't get cell phone reception." </blockquote>
<blockquote>
The industry is pushing Senate Bill 135, referred to as "the AT&T bill" by its sponsor and others because it originated with that company's lobbyists...</blockquote>
That's <b>31 lobbyists in Frankfort alone</b>, by the way.<br />
<br />ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-12187628662012638702012-02-20T08:11:00.000-08:002012-02-20T08:11:08.647-08:00P6 is busy. I think he'd appreciate some posts from the network.I immediately thought of <a href="http://www.prometheus6.org/" target="_blank"><b>Prometheus6</b></a> when I saw these two techie items. He is real-world occupied as you can tell from his site. We can't fill his shoes but how about jumping in on your own blog or site with a P6 topic?<br />
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First, the <b>nanobots</b>:<br />
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Second, the civilian version of the "We know what you're up to" <b>drone</b>:<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="http://thetandd.com/animal-rights-group-says-drone-shot-down/article_017a720a-56ce-11e1-afc4-001871e3ce6c.html" target="_blank">Animal rights group says drone shot down</a><br />
...Steve Hindi, president of SHARK (SHowing Animals Respect and Kindness), said his group was preparing to launch its Mikrokopter drone to video what he called a live pigeon shoot on Sunday when law enforcement officers and an attorney claiming to represent the privately-owned plantation near Ehrhardt tried to stop the aircraft from flying...</blockquote>
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And here's the <a href="http://thetandd.com/animal-rights-group-says-drone-shot-down/article_017a720a-56ce-11e1-afc4-001871e3ce6c.html?mode=video" target="_blank">homespun video of the incident</a>. (Sorry, no embedding for this one.)<br />
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<br />ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-24681387045257204092012-02-12T14:28:00.000-08:002012-02-12T14:48:48.145-08:00Black Male Student SuccessSince there has been quite a gap between my last post and this, I want to start on a positive note that is nonetheless on the theme of reclaiming "the other two-fifths" of the existence that was designed into the U.S. Constitution at the end of the 18th Century. There is bound to be plenty to grouse about later as this election year unfolds.<br /><br />The first snippet below comes from excellent coverage a few days ago at <a href="http://www.insidehighered.com/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Inside Higher Ed.</span></a> If there were no month of February, we'd have to invent it just to accommodate stories like this:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/02/06/study-aims-learn-why-some-black-men-succeed-college"></a><blockquote><a href="http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/02/06/study-aims-learn-why-some-black-men-succeed-college">When Black Men Succeed</a><br />February 6, 2012 - 3:00am<br />By Doug Lederman<br /><br />The litany of bad news about the status of black men in higher education is by now familiar. They make up barely 4 percent of all undergraduate students, the same proportion as in 1976. They come into college less prepared than their peers for the rigors of college-level academic work. Their completion rates are the lowest of all major racial and ethnic groups in the U.S.<br /><br />Shaun R. Harper is tired of hearing the list. It's not that he believes it's inaccurate -- the facts are the facts -- or irrelevant. But what troubles Harper, an associate professor of higher education at the University of Pennsylvania, is that it's pretty much all that we hear, in higher education research, in news reports, and as reflected in campus policies. <span style="font-weight: bold;">That single-minded theme struck Harper personally as incomplete, since it didn't reflect his own experience or that of many black men he knew...</span> [emphasis added]</blockquote><br />Professor Harper could have just kvetched, but instead undertook the largest qualitative study to date that takes as its premise black male success and not black male pathology, the <span style="font-weight: bold;">National Black Male College Achievement Study.</span> Here is the link to the PDF of the study:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.gse.upenn.edu/equity/sites/gse.upenn.edu.equity/files/publications/bmss.pdf">http://www.gse.upenn.edu/equity/sites/gse.upenn.edu.equity/files/publications/bmss.pdf</a><br /><br />Enjoy!ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-13089688625984967642011-07-20T07:10:00.000-07:002011-07-20T07:32:20.676-07:00Wake up, Dorothy. You were never in Kansas[Big ol' tip o' the fedora to <a href="http://www.prometheus6.org/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Prometheus6</span></a> for snapping me out of "too busy to post" mode.]<br /><br />Apparently you can make death threats against a Presidential candidate (translation: a black candidate, specifically Barack Obama) on the Internet and get away with it.<br /><br /><blockquote><a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/07/online-call-to-shoot-obama-was-free-speech-not-a-crime-appeals-court-rules.html" target="_blank">Man's call for Obama assassination is free speech, not crime, court rules</a><br />July 19, 2011 | 4:27 pm<br /><br />A La Mesa man who posted racial epithets and a call to "shoot" Barack Obama on an Internet chat site was engaging in constitutionally protected free speech, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday in overturning his criminal conviction...<br /><br />...the statute doesn't criminalize "predictions or exhortations to others to injure or kill the president," said the majority opinion written by Judge Stephen Reinhardt.<br /><br />"When our law punishes words, we must examine the surrounding circumstances to discern the significance of those words’ utterance, but must not distort or embellish their plain meaning so that the law may reach them," said the 2-1 ruling in which Chief Judge Alex Kozinski joined but Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw dissented.</blockquote><br />Quick now, who's surprised? And who thinks this would be consistently applied to threats against a white candidate? And who thinks the (two) judges in the majority are sure in their own minds that race played no part in their decision?<br /><br /><a href="http://documents.latimes.com/usa-v-walter-bagdasarian/" target="_blank">Full decision here</a>.ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-33025479233149310102011-06-13T11:47:00.000-07:002011-06-13T11:52:44.333-07:00Neil deGrasse Tyson on Innovation [cross-post]<div><br /></div>h/t NewBlackMan where I <a href="http://newblackman.blogspot.com/2011/06/neil-degrasse-tyson-on-innovation.html"><b>commented on how/whether to show this clip to students</b></a>.<div><br /><div><br /></div><div><object width="416" height="374" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="ep"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><param name="movie" value="http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/apps/cvp/3.0/swf/cnn_416x234_embed.swf?context=embed&videoId=us/2011/05/13/obrien.degrasse.tyson.jobs.cnn"><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"><embed src="http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/apps/cvp/3.0/swf/cnn_416x234_embed.swf?context=embed&videoId=us/2011/05/13/obrien.degrasse.tyson.jobs.cnn" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" bgcolor="#000000" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="416" wmode="transparent" height="374"></embed></object><br /></div></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-14563433553091160852011-06-04T14:37:00.000-07:002011-06-04T15:55:46.601-07:00Crooked Timber takes another whack at the prison system<div><br /></div><b>Crooked Timber</b> tends to come at issues from an academic's angle. Not always scholarly and not always literary, but highfalutin enough to ward off the kiddies who have just learned to keyboard and post. Not always right, but they tend to think through posts before they go live. Often a bit smug and ivory-tower and detached (exception: when one of their own was affected by the Wisconsin protests of late winter), but usually self-aware enough to know they're doing it.<div><br /></div><div>Yesterday, CT's <b>Eszter Hargittai</b> put up a <b><a href="http://crookedtimber.org/2011/06/03/more-on-the-us-prison-system/">side-door post about the recent narrow Supreme Court decision</a></b> that admonishes the California prison system for its perennial overcrowding and lack of health services. This ties back to a <a href="http://theothertwofifths.blogspot.com/2011/05/later-turns-out-to-be-now-for.html">recurring TOTF theme</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>The CT commenters are covering the bases fairly well from their perspective, with a bit less snark than is their norm (yes, a <i>bit</i> less) so take a look, in the spirit of well-roundedness. They do tend to belabor and over-argue certain points that may be self-evident to some of us. (OK, fair enough, "some of us" would probably include anyone who's been a person of color in the US for more than three days.)</div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-74236664370424583302011-06-04T07:33:00.000-07:002011-06-04T07:52:03.263-07:00Haiti is not rebuilt but we must have our priorities<p><br /></p><p>While the media and many in the blogosphere are seemingly obsessed with how a couple of politicians' personal lives are melting down, I'm reminding by <strong>rikyrah</strong> at <a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/" target="_blank">Jack and Jill</a>, who was reminded by <strong>BooMan</strong>, whom I don't cite often, that Haiti is still under the imperial thumb of yore.</p><p>Believe me, if I had a better term than "imperial thumb" I'd use it. But the same external influences (socioeconomic, cultural, religious) that have been punishing Haiti since it dared attempt independence are still in full play...</p><p>And if nothing else we should remember that they had an earthquake too.</p><p>Because <strong><a href="http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2011/6/4/95827/85535" target="_blank">BooMan breaks it down like a fraction</a></strong>* better than I can paraphrase on this rainy Saturday morning, I will just link through. Enjoy and be enlightened.</p><p>This also reminds me that I'm overdue for a contribution to <strong><a href="http://www.pih.org/" target="_blank">Partners in Health</a></strong>, one of the few NGOs that seems to just stay there and help people directly, before, during and after earthquakes. I'll take care of that today.</p><p>____________<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">*Don't worry, I will stop saying "breaks it down like a fraction" after a while.</span><br /></p>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-9459299062252282682011-05-30T14:07:00.000-07:002011-05-30T15:10:23.642-07:00Memorial Day and the Former Slaves Who Started Ith/t <a href="http://bigthink.com/ideas/38659">Kris Broughton at Big Think/Resurgence</a> for starting me on this trail. I'm all for honoring the fallen each Memorial Day. I want to honor <i>all</i> the fallen, though, and this is my contribution to that end. From another perspective it's a good case study of how history may be "lost" and how it can be rediscovered.<div><br /></div><div>Broughton's May 30 post popped up on my Blogger reading list with the headline<b> "S.C. Black Freedmen Organized First Memorial Day Celebration In 1865"</b>-- and after replacing my uppers, I went straight to Wikipedia, font of all wisdom. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Day">Sure enough, the Memorial Day entry</a> says, and I quote:<div><br /></div></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; ">Formerly known as <b>Decoration Day</b>, which was first recorded to have been observed by Freedmen (freed enslaved southern blacks) in Charleston, South Carolina in 1865, at the Washington Race Course, to remember the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War. Today, what is now known as Memorial Day, is a day of reflection and recognition of ordinary people who sometimes visit cemeteries and graves to honor their deceased relatives while also commemorating all U.S. Service Members who died while in<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_service" title="Military service" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(6, 69, 173); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">military service</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1em; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; "><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Day#cite_note-1" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(6, 69, 173); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; white-space: nowrap; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; "><span>[</span>2<span>]</span></a></sup> The recognition of the fallen victims was then enacted under the name Memorial Day by an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR)<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference" style="line-height: 1em; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; "><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Day#cite_note-2" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(6, 69, 173); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; white-space: nowrap; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; "><span>[</span>3<span>]</span></a></sup> — to honor<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Army" title="Union Army" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(6, 69, 173); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">Union</a> soldiers of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_War" title="American Civil War" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(6, 69, 173); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">American Civil War</a>. Over time, it was extended after <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I" title="World War I" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(6, 69, 173); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">World War I</a> to honor all Americans who have died in all wars.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>I knew about the expansion after WWI part, but not the prior history of the holiday. That never got mentioned, somehow, in the required history that was covered during my military service.</div><div><br /></div><div>After a quick skim of the Wikipedia entry, I dutifully went to the Broughton post. Seems he had been inspired by a <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/05/the-first-memorial-day/239634/">Ta-Nehisi Coates post at </a><i><a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/05/the-first-memorial-day/239634/">The Atlantic</a></i>... (with some quite cogent comments there, by the way, and not too much racist chaff, as TNC screens for that)</div><div><br /></div><div>...which was in turn inspired by an excellent <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/30/opinion/30blight.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=all">David Blight article in the New York Times</a>...</div><div><br /></div><div>...which drew upon research Blight had done some time earlier, and earlier discussed near the end of...</div><div><br /></div><div>...a <a href="http://academicearth.org/lectures/appomattox-and-beyond-end-of-war">lecture he gave about the end of the Civil War</a> called "To Appomattox and Beyond: The End of the War and a Search for Meanings." [video at the link, transcript available <a href="http://oyc.yale.edu/history/civil-war-and-reconstruction/content/transcripts/transcript-19-to-appomattox-and-beyond-the-end-of">here</a>]</div><div><br /></div><div>Back to the Resurgence/Big Think post, there was one link I had skipped so I went back for it. The link leads to an article titled <a href="http://www.lawattstimes.com/component/content/article/52-featured/1849-slaves-started-memorial-day.html">"Slaves Started Memorial Day"</a> that was republished in May 2010 by the L.A. Watts Times. (This Brian Hicks article first appeared under the title "The First Memorial Day" on May 24, 2009 in the [Charleston, S.C.] <i>Post and Courier.</i> It may be read <a href="http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2009/may/24/the_first_memorial_day83450/">here</a>.)</div><div><br /></div><div>The Hicks article also brings a bit more of the local view and that makes it worth a read.</div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-6153865215554239512011-05-27T20:08:00.000-07:002011-05-27T20:27:16.880-07:00"Later" turns out to be "now" for California prisonsThere's a <b><a href="http://subrealism.blogspot.com/2011/05/scotus-orders-massive-california-inmate.html" target="_blank">new conversation at subrealism</a></b> about the Supreme Court decision on California prisons. Too many prisoners, too little space, too few services. (Services, if you're concerned about taxpayer dollars, are things like just enough medical care to keep the state out of "cruel and unusual punishment" territory if administered properly.)<div><br /></div><div>We've known the extent of the problem for some years, thanks to <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelton_Henderson" target="_blank">Judge Thelton Henderson</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">'s constant admonitions</span></b>, but as a state we kind of dragged our societal feet until, oh, right this minute. Shifting prisoners to the county jails and declaring victory is not going to work well, as there is overcrowding and underfunding there too, and the sheriffs are pretty upset about the whole thing. Add potential layoffs to the mix and it's even less pretty.</div><div><br /></div><div>ProfGeo comment is at the "new conversation" link above, with some informative discussion from CNu and the crowd as well. Please check it out.</div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-53123972237575105092011-05-19T08:50:00.000-07:002011-05-19T08:54:41.663-07:00The difference between Strom Thurmond and Arnold Schwarzenegger<div><br /></div>Conservatives never <b><a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/05/19/MNSP1JHV3V.DTL" target="_blank">openly bad-mouthed</a></b> Strom Thurmond.<div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-35253561477967321552011-05-14T08:38:00.000-07:002011-05-14T09:05:51.388-07:00A "Fair Use" shot across the bowThe folks at <a href="http://www.racialicious.com/" target="_blank">Racialicious</a> have heard from <i>New York</i> magazine over <a href="http://www.racialicious.com/2011/05/13/on-the-trail-of-the-paper-tiger/" target="_blank"><b>a recent (May 13) post that quotes from an article on Asian Americans</b></a>. My guess is they are discussing the amount of the article that is quoted vs. the amount of new commentary from the Racialicious blogger. I don't think the magazine is trying to shut down discussion of the subject matter itself, in this particular case.<div><br /></div><div>Those of us who largely blog in "reactive" mode, citing the news of the day, should take note of the proceedings. According to the U.S. Copyright Office, <a href="http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html" target="_blank"><b>there are four tests for fair use</b></a> and a body of case law. There is no simple, hard and fast rule that applies to everyone all the time. We are <a href="http://www.libraryjournal.com/lj/home/888565-264/uncertainty_about_fair_use_is.html.csp" target="_blank">concerned in academia</a> as well as in the <a href="http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/fair_use_not_just_acceptable_its_essential_for_the.php" target="_blank">everyday world of sharing</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) didn't help. The waters have been further muddied over the past several years as certain outlets (e.g. major networks like MSNBC; TED...) have actively promoted embedding and in some cases even provided tools to selectively clip/edit their stuff for sharing. <i>New York</i> is old school print and they seem to be reacting to Racialicious from that perspective.</div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-1991227627524395342011-05-04T20:44:00.000-07:002011-05-04T21:11:30.140-07:00Why, Clearly, America has a Fighting President, not just a Black President*Since Sunday night, May 1, when President Obama announced that Osama bin Laden had been killed, the tenor of media coverage everywhere has changed. Although some right-wingers are paying left-handed compliments to our left-handed President, at least they're compliments for the moment.<br /><br /><div>MSM have resurrected a few media zombies such as Paul Wolfowitz, Alan Dershowitz, Michael Steele (who never really disappeared) and let them take the bit in their teeth. There is some second-guessing over whether to release photographs of the body, but everything else is like water off a duck's back, a bit of unseemly but not unexpected quibbling.</div><div><br /></div><div>There has been a lower-key response from the more peaceful and peaceable among us. Some with Buddhist perspective, most about the sanctity of life, most, I believe, a reaction to the finite-game, sports-victory home-team aspect of the "spontaneous" celebrations Sunday night. (Where <i>did</i> they get all those flags that late at night, anyway?)</div><div><br /></div><div>But for the moment, the President is just the President. I choose to savor that part of it.<br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">__________________________________<br />*This post's title is dedicated to Gene Wolfe.</span><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-7510612613898326592011-04-29T07:43:00.000-07:002011-04-29T14:38:07.547-07:00Tell Bill Maher: stop legitimizing Andrew Breitbart<div><br /></div><a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2011/04/tell-bill-maher-stop-legitimizing-andrew-breitbart/">Tell Bill Maher: stop legitimizing Andrew Breitbart</a><div><br /></div><div>James Rucker (ColorOfChange) makes the case that Maher should not be re-booking Breitbart, or at the least should come clean about Breitbart's record and not softball him. Cross-posted from JJP.</div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-91208672375091633442011-04-28T06:24:00.000-07:002011-04-28T08:07:36.422-07:00Why We Fight, or: Clearly, America has a Black President, not just a PresidentOn the night of April 27, 2011, the night of the day President Obama called a special press conference to personally release his birth certificate, thus "showing his papers" to the country, Rachel Maddow was smart enough to turn her show directly over to Goldie Taylor of The Grio. Goldie explains, through a story about her own family, how this aspect of race in America has shown the constancy of the trade winds.<div><br /></div><div><object width="420" height="245" id="msnbc5416c4" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640"><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=42791793&width=420&height=245"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed name="msnbc5416c4" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="420" height="245" flashvars="launch=42791793&width=420&height=245" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object><p style="font-size:11px; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #999; margin-top: 5px; background: transparent; text-align: center; width: 420px;">Visit msnbc.com for <a style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;" href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/">breaking news</a>, <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032507" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">world news</a>, and <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032072" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">news about the economy</a></p>Once you have absorbed the video, I recommend to your attention the full text of <b><a href="http://www.thegrio.com/politics/why-obama-shouldnt-have-had-to-show-his-papers.php">Goldie Taylor's column at the Grio</a></b>.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>ETA:</b> I am reminded by rikyrah at <a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/" target="_blank">JJP</a> to remind you to check <b><a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2011/04/video-with-president-obamas-birth-certificate-klansman-trump-reminds-blacks-they-will-never-be-american/" target="_blank">Baratunde's April 27 video</a></b> as well.</div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-10304830464750049992011-04-27T16:39:00.000-07:002011-04-27T16:57:30.030-07:00Digital Africa (cross-posted, sort of)I just don't want to lose this item from <i>Intelligent Life</i> magazine (from <i>The Economist</i>) before I've had a chance to reread it. I think you'll find more on topic re: technology and Africa, or corporate dominance and Africa, elsewhere... I focused on this article in the first place due to coverage at <a href="http://subrealism.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">CNu's place</a> of Libya's impact across Africa.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="http://moreintelligentlife.com/content/ideas/jm-ledgard/digital-africa?page=full" target="_blank">Digital Africa</a></b></div><div><b>In a continent with few computers and little electricity, a smartphone is not just a phone—it’s a potential revolution. J.M. Ledgard reports from Somalia and Kenya ...</b></div><br /><div>From INTELLIGENT LIFE Magazine, Spring 2011</div><br /><div>The front-line in Mogadishu was just beyond the ruined cathedral. You could hear the small-arms fire of the al-Qaeda fighters and the return of heavy machinegun-fire from the sandbagged positions of the African Union troops. But the scene on the sun-washed street in the Hamarweyne district was calm. Women were shopping for fruit and vegetables, and the ciabatta and pasta Mogadishu gained a taste for in its Italian colonial days. A couple of cafés, serving also as electronics shops, were crowded, with people inside making voip phone calls and surfing the internet. Outside on the street boys were fiddling with mobile phones, Nokia and Samsung mostly, but also those fantastical Chinese models you find in poorer countries, nameless, with plastic dragon-like construction, heavy on battery-guzzling features like television tuners. I asked my Somali companion what the boys were up to. He wound down the window and summoned his gunmen to go and ask. The answer came back. “They’re updating their Facebook profiles.”</div><br /><div>According to a recent intelligence estimate by a defence contractor, 24% of residents in Mogadishu access the internet at least once a week. This in a city in a state of holy war, too dangerous for foreigners to visit freely, where a quarter of the 1.2m residents live under plastic sheeting, infested, hungry, and reliant on assistance brought in on ships that are liable to be attacked at sea by pirates. Half the population of Mogadishu is under 18. Some of these teenagers end up uploading and downloading ghoulish martyrdom videos and tinkering with websites celebrating the global jihad. But far more spend their time searching for love, following English football teams, reading Somali news sites uncensored by the jihadists, and keeping track of money transfers from relatives abroad. It takes more than violent anarchy to extinguish the desire of the young to stay connected, and to keep up with the contemporaries they see on satellite television.</div><br /><div>When it comes to electricity, Africa remains the dark continent. There are a billion Africans, and they use only 4% of the world’s electricity. Most of that is round the edges, in Egypt, the Maghreb and South Africa. The rest of Africa is unlit; seen from space, the Congo River basin is as dark as the Southern Ocean. Demand for power is already outpacing economic growth. With its population expected to double to 2 billion by 2050, Africa will have to build entire new power grids just to stand still. So far, the failure has been systematic: of Nigeria’s 79 power stations, only 17 are working. All of this increases political risk. Some African countries could collapse by 2020 unless they can power an industrial base. Yet Africa’s virtual future is not dependent on its physical future. You don’t need much electricity to run a phone network. You need even less to run a phone itself. Even the scabbiest African village has worked out how to charge mobiles and other devices using car batteries, bicycles and solar panels. Connectivity is a given: it is coming and happening and spreading in Africa whether or not factories get built or young people find jobs. Culture is being formed online as well as on the street: for the foreseeable future, the African voice is going to get louder, while the voice of ageing Europe quietens.</div><br /><div>What makes this possible is a series of undersea cables which have finally hooked up Africa to the rest of the internet. EASSY (the East African Submarine Cable System) emerged from the Indian Ocean at Mombasa last July, looking as fine as gossamer and delivering 3.84 terabits per second to 18 countries. It seemed inconceivable that it could carry the weight of so much information and so many hopes. But EASSY and other fibre-optic cables are freeing Africa from the costs and failings of the satellite internet, and for the first time making it affordable for Africans to talk to the outside world and, crucially, to each other. Prices are down, speeds are up: it takes minutes now instead of hours to download a YouTube video. The future is not supposed to feel futuristic—it’s usually far more like the present than the novelists and film-makers imagine—but the present in Africa has been rudimentary for so long that this future really does feel like science fiction...</div><div><br /></div><div>[Much more at the above link on impact of mobile, and influence of Facebook, Google & Nokia]</div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-66231830422947241512011-04-22T14:15:00.000-07:002011-04-22T14:20:02.254-07:00350 for Earth DayA neat compilation, "350 for Earth Day: African Americans Enriching Life on Our Planet," at: <div><br /></div><div><b><a href="http://www.hiphopcaucus.org/earthday/" target="_blank">http://www.hiphopcaucus.org/earthday/</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-27674590049364285572011-04-21T17:11:00.000-07:002011-04-21T17:24:09.285-07:00Google & minority hiring practices as "trade secret"Duly noted that Blogger is owned by Google and all that, and people providing "free" services don't have to explain anything, not really. Yeah, I'm glad for the space, having haggled with ISPs in the past. And I can follow that Google's hiring <i>process</i> might be a trade secret. But the actual numbers of minorities employed? Reverse-engineer those numbers to understand Google?<br /><b><a href="http://www.penipress.com/2011/04/17/google-wont-release-minority-hiring-statistics-claiming-trade-secret/" target="_blank"></a></b><blockquote><b><a href="http://www.penipress.com/2011/04/17/google-wont-release-minority-hiring-statistics-claiming-trade-secret/" target="_blank">Google won’t release minority hiring statistics, claiming trade secret</a></b><br />By Priyanka Sharma | 17 Apr 2011<br /><br />The universal search engine may not be as transparent as it claims.<br /><br />Google’s mission statement is to “organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful,” yet when asked to disclose data about its internal hiring process, the company flatly refused.<br /><br />Google has claimed that its hiring procedures are a trade secret, but other Silicon Valley heavy hitters like Intel, Cisco, and eBay have released their data.<br /><br />“All we are asking is for Google to show us the numbers,” said Len Canty, chairman of the Black Economic Council. He was among several minority leaders who protested outside Google’s Mountain View headquarters on Feb. 10, rallying for Google to be more transparent about the minorities it hires...<div><br /></div><div></div></blockquote><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-11843406320233929962011-04-20T11:01:00.000-07:002011-04-20T11:12:39.899-07:00A History of Black Folk on Twitter (cross-post)<div>Mark Anthony Neal at TEDxDuke 2011:</div><div><div><br /></div><div><object width="360" height="292"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GbPJNK4vw1s?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GbPJNK4vw1s?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="360" height="292"></embed></object></div></div><div><br /></div><div>See more of Dr. Neal at <b><a href="http://newblackman.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">NewBlackMan</a></b>. But watch the video first... </div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-35561294242548574602011-04-16T10:27:00.000-07:002011-04-16T13:09:17.803-07:00The Black History of the White House (book)<div>Cross-posted at <b><a href="http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/" target="_blank">JJP</a></b>.</div><div><br /></div><i>The Black History of the White House</i> on BookTV (C-SPAN2), author Clarence Lusane video at the link:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.booktv.org/Program/12201/The+Black+History+of+the+White+House.aspx" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(204, 0, 0); border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; float: none; text-indent: 0px; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; font-style: normal; text-align: left; display: inline; width: auto; max-width: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; " target="_blank">http://www.booktv.org/Program/...</a><br /><br />Book excerpt at City Lights (PDF):<br /><br /><a href="http://www.citylights.com/book/?GCOI=87286100744980" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(204, 0, 0); border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; float: none; text-indent: 0px; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; font-style: normal; text-align: left; display: inline; width: auto; max-width: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; " target="_blank">http://www.citylights.com/book...</a><div><br /></div><div><b>ETA:</b> Here's a <b><a href="http://www.npr.org/2011/02/03/133470777/liberty-limited-in-white-houses-black-history" target="_blank">30-min. NPR segment with Lusane</a></b>.</div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-25640610369154139452011-04-13T15:05:00.000-07:002011-04-13T15:19:20.969-07:00Obama's Budget Deficit SpeechHere's a <a href="http://wordle.net/" target="_blank">Wordle</a> visualization of the text of President Obama's speech at GWU on Wednesday, April 13. (The words <i>laughter</i> and <i>applause</i> were removed.) Click on the image for a larger version.<div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOiJdcpl0ETw_d1tgw2Q7SAjlMzDZ2JGyVMzQKNsP7eFVHwJCg0WkRAKhECb6geUUDV2Aa3-bdhuEoZZRrCQgLqbqVpqvEkkQ8VN1ZBLDuSvxLmiVJRhK-tjFjuwDDdNJlJ-XgHy_YjaI/s1600/budget-deficit-wordle-041311.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOiJdcpl0ETw_d1tgw2Q7SAjlMzDZ2JGyVMzQKNsP7eFVHwJCg0WkRAKhECb6geUUDV2Aa3-bdhuEoZZRrCQgLqbqVpqvEkkQ8VN1ZBLDuSvxLmiVJRhK-tjFjuwDDdNJlJ-XgHy_YjaI/s400/budget-deficit-wordle-041311.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5595194571564879922" style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 239px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-72434715337322229662011-04-09T21:17:00.000-07:002011-04-09T22:06:33.089-07:00Prison Smorgasbord! not exactly all you can eatI was already piling up some items in multiple browser tabs, hoping the browser wouldn't crash, when <b><a href="http://www.prometheus6.org/node/27932" target="_blank">Prometheus6 went ahead and posted this item</a></b> that is exceedingly strange due to the joint appearance of Ben Jealous (NAACP) and Grover Norquist (hater of all taxes all the time):<div><br /></div><div><object width="512" height="328"> <param name="movie" value="http://www-tc.pbs.org/video/media/swf/PBSPlayer.swf"> <param name="flashvars" value="video=1872592249&player=viral"> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www-tc.pbs.org/video/media/swf/PBSPlayer.swf" flashvars="video=1872592249&player=viral" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" wmode="transparent" allowfullscreen="true" width="512" height="328" bgcolor="#000000"></embed></object><p style="font-size:11px; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #808080; margin-top: 5px; background: transparent; text-align: center; width: 512px;">Watch the <a style="text-decoration:none !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#4eb2fe !important;" href="http://video.pbs.org/video/1872592249" target="_blank">full episode</a>. See more <a style="text-decoration:none !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#4eb2fe !important;" href="http://newshour.pbs.org/" target="_blank">PBS NewsHour.</a></p></div><div>So best for all concerned is for me to just add my bottlenecked items about California's new prison transfer law, AB109; Gov. Jerry Brown's signing message affecting how the bill is implemented; reactions from county/local officials; an item on women and prison reform; and several others. Off you go, then:</div><div><br /></div><div><div><a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?entry_id=86364" target="_blank"><b><i>Jerry Brown signs bill to transfer criminals to counties, angers sheriffs</i></b></a></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill late Monday that aims to make a key part of his budget proposal a reality -- AB109, which authorizes the transfer of thousands of state prisoners to local jails (and also shifts various other criminal justice functions away from the state and down to the county level).</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>One problem: Brown planned to fund the measure with tax increases and extensions -- you know, the ones vehemently opposed by Republicans. The governor had hoped to put those taxes before voters in June, but threw in the towel last week after being stymied by that GOP opposition.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>But Brown had to do something -- if he didn't sign of veto AB109 by Monday, it would have gone into law automatically. So he attempted to soften the blow by writing in his signing message that AB109 will not take effect until the state has figured out way to pay counties for the extra responsibilities...</i></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b><a href="http://www.montereyherald.com/local/ci_17782240" target="_blank"><i>Monterey County plans for inmate influx</i></a></b></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Governor signs bill returning prisoners to local jails</i></div><div><i>By JULIA REYNOLDS </i></div><div><i>Herald Staff Writer</i></div><div><i>Posted: 04/06/2011 01:42:46 AM PDT</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Law enforcement officials in Monterey County are preparing for the return of some state prisoners to county custody even as they try to discern exactly what that would mean.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Late Monday, Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law a bill authorizing the return of certain "low-level" nonviolent offenders to California counties — with the caveat that it won't happen until the money is there to help counties accommodate them.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>The bill approved by Brown says the "realignment" is scheduled to begin July 1 — but can only go into effect "upon creation of a community corrections grant program to assist in implementing this act, and upon an appropriation to fund the grant program."</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Despite that provision, some local police leaders fear the state won't follow through with adequate funds.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>"The California Police Chiefs Association has had a lot of trust in Governor Brown since he was attorney general," said Marina Police Chief Eddie Rodriguez. "He normally does what he says. The only problem is the state is in a fiscal crisis and we don't know where that money will come from."</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>"I don't think 'make sure that it's fair' is part of the paradigm," said Sheriff Scott Miller. "It's not going to be a pretty thing."</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>But Miller said he has a more immediate concern than the money — where to put the returning prisoners.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>The county's jail runs about 200 to 300 inmates over capacity every day...</i></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>INTERMISSION: </b>Here's a San Francisco Chronicle cartoon that sums up the above two articles, I think. Click the jammies to see the whole Tom Meyer cartoon.</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/04/08/EDMEYER.DTL" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbaLWawmeYwYuNc6E3Z-Gd7o2mmMQC3XKr4Gu6enOL7su_XdN9Dc2tR5w5vZ9JOSRPDwPpM4OJBp1OcC6szRjeA61HiS0-8QDvk8Ac8XR_2nAV-Ql47V_Q1fRRSrFsKSNQrdk7dV4ROAo/s320/meyer-prison-transfers.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593814232171712322" style="cursor: pointer; width: 298px; height: 225px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b><a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/04/05/EDGP1IPNH0.DTL" target="_blank"><i>California prison reform should start with women</i></a></b></div><div><i>Timothy P. Silard,Lateefah Simon</i></div><div><i>Tuesday, April 5, 2011</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>If we want to fix California's broken criminal justice system, let's start by changing our approach to incarcerating and rehabilitating women. That is one of the key proposals offered in March by a panel of law enforcement and social justice leaders on California Attorney General Kamala Harris' transition team. Here's why:</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>California holds the largest number of female prisoners in the country...</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>How we re-enter women into society affects entire families and communities...</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Our current way of doing business makes no fiscal sense. We spend about $52,000 to keep each woman behind bars for one year; the two largest women's prisons, both in Chowchilla, cost $278 million to operate annually. Annual costs for social services for children of female inmates are estimated at $56 million.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>The costs we incur make even less sense as the vast majority of women behind bars today are classified as low-risk and were convicted of nonviolent crimes...</i></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b><a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/04/02/state/n070148D91.DTL"><i>State budget crises push sentencing reforms</i></a></b></div><div><i>By GREG BLUESTEIN, Associated Press</i></div><div><i>Saturday, April 2, 2011</i></div><div><i>(04-02) 08:32 PDT ATLANTA (AP) --</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>As costs to house state inmates have soared in recent years, many conservatives are reconsidering a tough-on-crime era that has led to stiffer sentences, overcrowded prisons and bloated corrections budgets.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Ongoing budget deficits and steep drops in tax revenue in most states are forcing the issue, with law-and-order Republican governors and state legislators beginning to overhaul years of policies that were designed to lock up more criminals and put them away for longer periods of time</i><i>...</i></div></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div><b><a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/08/MNSQ1I2ASB.DTL"><i>Result of furloughs - $1 billion liability</i></a></b></div><div><i>Prison guards, supervisors rack up millions of hours in paid time off</i></div><div><i>Marisa Lagos, Chronicle Staff Writer</i></div><div><i>Tuesday, March 8, 2011</i></div><div><i>(03-08) 04:00 PDT Sacramento - --</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>California prison guards and their supervisors have racked up 33.2 million hours of vacation, sick and other paid time off - an astounding accumulation that amounts to nearly half a year per worker.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>It also adds up to a $1 billion liability for taxpayers of the deficit-plagued state.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Poor management at California's prisons has for years allowed workers to stock up on generous amounts of paid time off - a benefit that employees must either use or cash out when they retire. But the numbers swelled when former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger imposed furloughs in 2009, forcing prison guards and their supervisors to take unpaid days off each month to help save state cash.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Furloughs are problematic at California's 33 state prisons, all of which operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week and have thousands of unfilled prison guard positions. Workers have been coming in on their furlough days and banking paid time off.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>"You can't shut prisons down," Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokesman Oscar Hidalgo said. "You have to keep them operational. You have to cover every post. You don't want to endanger staff by not doing that."...</i></div></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i><br /></i></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-43105856413794531012011-04-07T07:48:00.000-07:002011-04-07T07:54:52.067-07:00A cross-post for blogging colleagues<a href="http://www.blackweb20.com/">BlackWeb 2.0</a> has announced a joint event between <a href="http://blackweblogawards.com/">Black Weblog Awards</a> and <a href="http://www.bloggingwhilebrown.com/">Blogging While Brown</a>, in L.A. over the July 8-10, 2011 weekend.<div><br /></div><div><a href="http://www.blackweb20.com/2011/04/06/black-weblog-awards-and-blogging-while-brown-unite-for-a-black-social-media-weekend/">http://www.blackweb20.com/2011/04/06/black-weblog-awards-and-blogging-while-brown-unite-for-a-black-social-media-weekend/</a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>ProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.com0